Is fast food equivalent to obesity? Nowadays it is common for Americans to eat whatever they want. Many assume that it is their choice to decide where their meal comes from, whether it is a fast food restaurant, a home-cooked meal, or a sumptuous dinner at a restaurant. However, should a person be blamed for their weight gain? Or should the culprit be easy access to fast-food restaurants? David Zinczenko, author of the article “Don't Blame the Eater,” insists that children who consume fast food should not be blamed for their obesity. In fact, it should be possible for children to “bring legal action against the fast food industry” for their weight gain. Fast food companies should be held accountable for the current obesity epidemic. Zinczenko claims that fast food companies use distorted nutrition labels on calorie-rich foods and take advantage of overworked parents. Many parents are too busy to manage their children's eating habits, which leads children to make the decision themselves. Additionally, whether fast food companies provide correct calorie information on labels, Zinczenko says "[can] be difficult to understand." Furthermore, Zinczenko supports his claims with some statistics showing that there was an increase in diabetes in 1994. About 5% of diabetes in children was related to obesity before 1994, while today that figure represents 30% in United States. Zinczenko also provides support for his claims by indicating that a package of dressing a consumer will use on his salad is not one serving, but rather 2.5 servings. This means that the calorie count is misleading because consumers eat 620 calories instead of 280 calories. While I agree that it is justifiable for children to file a lawsuit against a fast food chain for causing them to be overweight, fast food alone is not responsible for obesity, but it is a huge contributor. I don't think society can blame obesity solely on one factor, genetics play a role in contributing to obesity. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay One factor that contributes to weight gain is the legacy of obesity. The gene can be monogenic, meaning it is caused by one gene, or multifactorial, meaning there are multiple interactions between genes that cause obesity (Public). According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Studies have compared obese and nonobese people for variation in genes that might influence behaviors (such as the desire to overeat or the tendency to be sedentary) or metabolism (such as a decreased ability to use dietary fat as fuel or an increased tendency to store body fat).” In other words, the CDC suggests that there are differences in behavior and metabolism between obese and non-obese people. The CDC's observation succeeds in showing me that fast food chains are not the only factor contributing to obesity because these behaviors and tendencies are caused by internal forces, such as metabolism. In short, Zinczenko's argument was well made and gave an idea of ​​what the fast food industries are doing. He supported his claims with intriguing statistics from good sources and presented thoughtful evidence. While I rightly agree with Zinczenko that fast food is a big problem in contributing to childhood obesity, I don't think fast food chains are the only ones.